Gravestones
by Julia Holtemore
Summary: COMPLETE! PreDH. Harry goes to visit his parents graves. To his surprise, he meets Remus there as well. What trials will they face together? What memories will they conquer? FatherSon relationship between Harry and Remus! NOT SLASH!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** I hope y'all enjoy this. I've been meaning to portray the father/son relationship between Remus and Harry. This ought to do the trick. It'll end up to be roughly six chapters long. Tell me what you think! Oh, and it hasn't been beta-ed yet, so be patient with spelling errors.

**Disclaimer:** T'ain't mine, I'm afraid.

Gravestones

Chapter One

Harry Potter woke up at the Burrow incredibly early one August morning and heaved himself out of bed. As much as he'd like to say that he was a morning person, lately he'd had to drag himself out of bed. He figured it was due to his stress over... well, everything that had happened to him. However, he seemed to be able to get up before everyone else in the morning – though his nightmares certainly served as a strong wake-up call.

It wasn't as if Harry was not used to nightmares. Since he was a child his dreams were filled with his parents and flashes of green light. But through the years the nightmares just sort of... piled on. He not only had flashes of the night his parents were murdered, but Cedric's, Sirius', and now Dumbledore's had all been added on as well. He was too ashamed to talk about it, supposing that people would think him childish for having nightmares about such things. But he couldn't help being frightened. Not only for his own life, but the lives of people around him, since they all seemed to be dropping like flies. Let's just say that Harry was a little weary of his nighttime confrontations with Voldemort or his Death Eaters.

Today Harry had an idea. He'd actually had the idea for quite a while, but he decided to act upon it today. He had never visited his parents' graves before – he had never found the time or mode of transportation. But now it was different, since he'd just received his apparition license and had told the Weasleys' that he was going to be out today.

It took a while to convince them. Mrs. Weasley kept insisting it wasn't safe and Ron kept saying he wanted to go with him. They even pulled the "If Dumbledore was here..." card. But they didn't understand. They would never understand. So he was going alone.

He very quietly stepped out of Fred and George's room, where he had been staying, and walked down the stairs – carrying his shoes in one hand and his wand in the other. Being careful to jump the creaky step second to the bottom, he stepped lightly into the kitchen. He breathed a sigh of relief as he saw that Mrs. Weasley was not up yet. Even though he had informed the Weasleys of his departure, he didn't want any last minute confrontations or second thoughts.

It may seem like a simple feat – visiting your parents' graves sixteen years after they died – but Harry was extremely nervous. Even though this was important to him, he knew he had enough doubt to not go through with it. And he really wanted to go through with it. He didn't really know why it was so important to him. He felt like he was going through with some sacred ceremony and that things were going to change because of it – hopefully for the better. He didn't really know how to describe it. He also couldn't shake the feeling that he needed to be there today rather than another day. But again, he had no idea why.

Not having much of an appetite, Harry pushed on his shoes and walked out the door without bothering to eat. He walked down the path that led from the Burrow to the road, ignoring the chickens that were clucking about at this ungodly hour. He quickly made his way to the road and walked about fifty feet away. When he reached what he felt was a good point, he turned around and sadly noted that this was where Dumbledore had apparated with him a little over a year ago. Therefore it should be safe to apparate.

Before he could change his mind, Harry shut his eyes and pictured Godric's Hollow in his mind. Then he quickly turned into nothingness, feeling the familiar – yet still uncomfortable – sensation of being pushed through a small tube. However, unlike all the other times he had apparated, it was over quickly and he found himself at his desired destination.

A soft breeze was playing its way across his face, gently pushing back his hair as he took in the small wood surrounding him. There were many ancient looking trees that were spread helter skelter throughout the peaceful area, and Harry briefly entertained the idea that perhaps they were as old as Godric Gryffindor, seeing as the hollow was named after him. He immediately pushed that thought out of his head as he noticed the houses a short ways away, and he instantly knew that he had lived there, on that street, with his parents. He had a strange feeling that he knew someone else around here as well, but immediately shook it off. He felt like he was delaying, and he really did want to visit his parents' graves. Straightening himself to full height, he looked up at the sign that read "Cemetery" and marched through the gate into the small enclosed area.

Immediately a sense of ultimate peace washed over him. Ron had once said that magical cemeteries were different than Muggle ones, though he didn't expound on the subject and it had left Harry to wonder. Now that he was feeling this incredible sensation and he never wanted to leave. Immediately the memory of Dumbledore telling him it didn't do to dwell on dreams popped into his head and he felt like it was a message from his mum. Harry nodded his head as if someone had spoken to him because he agreed that he couldn't simply wallow in this peace and forget to live, just as he could not wallow in the peace of the Mirror of Erised when Dumbledore had given him that particular piece of advice.

Harry quietly walked through the few headstones in the enclosed area, and found his parents quite easily, just to the right of the entrance. He walked over to the two headstones and knelt in the damp grass.

_James and Lily Potter_

_Beloved friends and parents_

_You will always remain in our hearts_

Harry smiled as he traced the inscription softly with hi finger, doubling over "beloved" and "parents".

_My parents,_ he thought with a smile._ These were my parents and no one else's._

He knew that sounded selfish, but after years of coveting every family from the Dursleys to the Weasleys, he couldn't help but finally feel like he was whole again, even if for just a moment, because he had found where his parents' bodies lay.

Sighing with a bit of contentment, yet also with regret, Harry settled back and pulled out his wand. Concentrating really hard, he thought, _"Orchideus"_ and immediately a small bunch of flowers appeared in his hand.

"I tried really hard to learn that when I knew I was coming here, so I hope you like them. It's not much, but... well, anyway, it's the best I can do."

Carefully placing the flowers in the small cup by the headstone, he smiled wistfully and wiped a stray tear that was making its way down his cheek.

"You know, I... I really miss you guys. I got really mad about Rita Skeeter's article a few years back – you know, where she said I cried about you guys every night. It's no where near true, Dad, so you can wipe that smirk off your face," Harry said with a smile. "But I do think about you two an awful lot, and sometimes I just wish..."

He sniffled quietly and bit his lip as it trembled dangerously. He didn't really try to hold back, however, since he was pretty sure he was the only one around so early in the morning. He felt his eyes burn and quickly closed them, trying to focus on saying the right thing.

"It's kind of unfair," he concluded weakly, trying to control his emotions and not start blubbering. "Everyone always gets to know their parents, and they have rows, certainly, but they have so many good times. I only had you for a little over a year, and everyone else always talks about what wonderful people you were. They talk about what a fantastic joker you were, Dad, and how you were so smart. And you too, Mum. You were always so clever and nice to everyone. I kinda feel like I have to compete with everyone's memories of you - sort of how Ron competes to be as good as his brothers. But Ron has known his brothers all his life, and I don't know you two at all."

He sighed and wiped his cheeks with his sleeves. "I just have so much to worry about, and I wish I could just sit and talk with you about something mundane, like school work or Quidditch, and just forget about it for an evening. It's not like I haven't accepted my fate. It's just that... well, I'm sick of being alone all the time. Sure, I have friends, but it's not the same as having family. Sirius was the closest thing I had to that, and now he's -"

Suddenly Harry felt an inclination to look over to his left. Again, it felt like someone was telling him to do so, only this time he felt very strongly that it was his dad. He slowly turned his head and read the inscription of the next gravestone over.

_Sirius "Padfoot" Black_

_Beloved friend and godfather_

Harry blinked and stared at it for a moment. He felt strange, and he couldn't get the picture of Sirius grinning at him out of his head.

"S-Sirius?" Harry hiccupped.

The picture of Sirius grinning remained in his mind. At first it comforted him, but suddenly he felt the pain of his godfather's death wash over him as it never had. His eyes began to burn with ferocity and he felt his shoulders begin to shake, even as Sirius' grinning face faded into a frown.

"This is what I mean!" Harry said to his parents' headstones, very distressed. "It's so unfair. I already lost you two, and then I lose Sirius, just what I was trying to prevent, and I... I..." He let out a small sob, hardly noticeable to anyone who didn't know that

Harry had never cried so hard in his life. He sniffled and wiped his eyes, desperately trying to quell the tears that continued to stream down his face.

"Sirius, I miss you so much. And now that Dumbledore's gone I don't know what to do. I know I have to destroy Voldemort, but let's face it – that's easier said than done." He vaguely realized that he was beginning to talk quite fast and was now blubbering as he had feared. But he continued to speak, desperate to get the weight off his chest. "And I can't go back to school because I have to look for the Horcruxes, and I had to break up with Ginny because I'm scared to death that someone will use her to get to me, and I have no home now that I'm seventeen and have left the Dursleys'. I'm just staying at the Weasleys, but I'm sick of imposing upon them, and I know I could go to stay at Grimmauld Place since you left that to me, but I could bear that because, as I said, I miss you so much, and now I'm terrified of what may happen, and – as much as I hate to say it – I wish someone would just help me!"

He was breathing heavily by the end of his schpeal, but as soon as he said everything he'd wanted to say, he felt peaceful again. He closed his eyes for a moment, letting the last of the tears wash away, when he was suddenly scared out of his wits by a hand on his shoulder.

Jumping and whipping out his wand, he turned around to see a haggard looking Remus Lupin, who was smiling sadly.

"Harry, what are you doing here?"

Harry felt his cheeks grow hot as he realized he'd been caught sobbing in a graveyard.

_Merlin, if the Prophet hears about this..._

His thoughts were interrupted when Lupin sighed.

"Never mind, I understand. I just stopped by to replace the flowers I put here last week," He said, gesturing to the graves in front of Harry. "But I see you've already covered James and Lily, so I'll just put these here for Sirius..."

Lupin knelt down and put the flowers reverently nest to Sirius' headstone before standing up and turning back to Harry.

"I came here a few minutes ago and saw you here, so I thought I'd give you some space," he said, looking at him with a mixture of sadness and concern. Harry knew Lupin ad seen him crying.

"Yeah, well..." Harry mumbled, searching for words. "I guess I'm not as over it as I thought," he said, gesturing to Sirius' headstone.

Lupin smiled and nodded. "I know how you feel." He paused for a moment. "You know, when Sirius... er, when it happened, I decided to put the headstone here, next to James. There was a small funeral, and I'm sorry you didn't get to come to that. Dumbledore didn't think it was best."

Harry sighed and nodded. He had often wondered if there had been any sort of memorial service, even though they could retrieve Sirius' body. He had long since forgiven Dumbledore for all his mistakes, but he couldn't help but feel a pang of regret that he'd missed it.

Lupin put a hand on Harry's shoulder, bringing his attention back to his old professor.

"Listen Harry, I'm really sorry I haven't had time to be with you. It's been hard to communicate, what with living with the werewolves. I'm only home for a little bit and all."

Harry forced himself to smile and looked down at the ground. "It's all right. I understand." He was surprised when Lupin shook his head emphatically.

"No Harry, it's not all right," Lupin said with conviction. "I know you need someone besides those Dursley's for parental guidance, and even though you're now legally an adult, I'd like to at least be there for you when you need me. Besides, I need someone too." He smiled as Harry looked at him skeptically. Then he looked like he suddenly got an idea. "Well, why don't you come by my house for a cup of tea?" he asked, sounding a little excited.

Harry's brow furrowed in confusion. "Where do you live, exactly?"

Lupin's eye's widened. "No one ever told you? Well, no wonder you haven't come around! It's just around this corner here, number nine." He had started to lead Harry out of the cemetery and toward the houses Harry had spotted a little ways away, but suddenly stopped and looked a bit awkward. "That is, if you want to..."

Harry could have laughed. Remus Lupin was normally so confident and composed. It was odd to see him nervous about what Harry's response was.

"Of course, er... Professor," he said awkwardly, mentally kicking himself for how stupid he sounded. Lupin hadn't been his professor for nearly four years, and he still called him that. Nevertheless, Harry noticed the relieved look on his face.

"Call me Remus, Harry. Or Moony – whichever you like. I was one of your Dad's best friends, and I'm no longer your professor, so feel free."

Harry nodded. "All right, er... Remus."

Harry couldn't help but smile as he walked out of the cemetery, Remus leading the way. They stepped past the gate and walked across the small grassy meadow until they reached the small lane where Remus' house stood. It was the house closest to the cemetery, and was rather small, but Harry didn't mind. He knew Remus had trouble finding work and he was away from home most of the time, anyway.

It was a little brown cottage with a dried lawn out front and a little number nine nailed to the siding, its white paint peeling. As they stepped inside, it was rather dark despite the morning light, due to the curtains that were covering the windows. Remus must have seen this and waved his wand, causing the curtains to jump backward and allow cheery light to filter in. There was a couch and a few shabby armchairs in the front room, but it was mostly loaded with bookshelves. Harry gazed at the titles and saw every type of book on every type of subject was crammed into these shelves. Snape's memory Harry had watched in the Pensieve must have been true to Remus' character. He appeared to be a very learned man.

"Go ahead and sit down, Harry. I'll go into the kitchen and make some tea."

Harry sat down on the sofa, feeling the sun slowly heat his black hair as he watched Remus bustle about making tea. He felt awkward just sitting there, but he didn't know his way about the kitchen, so he contented himself with looking around the room. There were various pictures he hadn't noticed on first glance, and Harry's heart skipped a beat when he realized they all had either his parents or Sirius in them. He picked up the one laying on the coffee table in front of him and saw that it was of Remus and Lily throwing snowballs at each other. Suddenly a stray snowball came from outside the frame and hit Remus in the back of the head. Harry watched as James marched up to Lily and wrapped his arms around her protectively and smirk while Sirius snuck up behind Remus and dumped a huge amount of snow down his shirt. Harry laughed as he watched Remus jump and then wrestle Sirius in the snow before he heard the present Remus clear his throat.

"Well, here's the tea. Which picture have you got there?"

Harry forfeited the picture to Remus and watched the man laugh and hand it back.

"I remember that day as clear as if it had just happened," he said, staring off into space with a smile. Harry waited for a moment before pressing.

"Er, can you tell me?" he asked quietly.

"What?" Remus asked, shaking his head as if coming out of a daze. "What did you say, Harry?"

"Can..." he shifted awkwardly in his seat. "Can you tell me what happened on that day?" he asked again.

Remus' smile widened. "Sure, Harry, I'd love to. Let's see... it was February, I believe, a few months before you were born. Lily had just gotten over her morning sickness stage in her pregnancy and surprised us all by suggesting we go outside and play in the snow for a bit. Of course, James was rather hesitant. He was very protective of you and your mum. But she insisted, and James could ever say no to Lily, so he relented. Sirius and I were there because we were always hanging around for some reason or another, though Lily never complained. That's just how your mother was. She could have a fiery temper for sure, but most of the time she was the nicest person you'd ever meet."

Harry couldn't help but get absorbed into the story as Remus told it. The way the werewolf told it, he made it sound so much more exciting, though it probably helped that Harry was eager to hear anything he could about his parents. Remus knew this, and Harry smiled in gratitude before gesturing for him to continue.

"Anyway, we went outside and walked in about six inches of snow to that meadow over there." He pointed out the window to the meadow they had walked through to reach Remus' home. "Of course, being the Padfoot and Prongs we know and love, they decided they wanted to transform and run wild for a bit. Next thing Lily and I knew, a stag and a dog were running about, tackling each other to the ground on occasion."

Harry grinned, picturing the two at it. What he would give to see that for himself.

"Lily and I, not able to transform – though we were sort of grateful that I couldn't – decided t play in the snow in a more conventional way. That, of course, was a snowball fight." The way Remus said that last sentence – with such an ominous tone – made Harry laugh loudly. Remus smiled, seeming glad that Harry was so into the story, and Harry waved him on. "Right, well, anyway, Lily threw the first snowball, thinking she was being clever by sneaking up behind me. It was too bad that she was a pregnant woman who wasn't exactly athletically inclined and I was a twenty-one year old who had too much pent up energy. I tried to go easy on her, but as you can see, she got completely soaked."

Remus pointed to the picture and Harry laughed to see that he was right. But then Harry got a closer look and realized that Remus was drenched as well. He didn't fail to point that out to the man sitting across from him.

"Er... Remus? You're all wet too," Harry stated simply, but with a playfully accusatory tone.

Remus glanced at the picture and laughed. "All right, so your mother had a mean right arm. But I put up a fairly good fight," he said in his defense. "Anyway, we'd been at it for a good half hour when _someone_ chucked a snowball at the back of my head. I knew it wasn't Lily, since the head was against the rules, and Lily always plays by the rules. I began scanning the trees to find Sirius and James when I saw a flash." He pointed to the picture. "Apparently James had gone into the house and gotten the camera before bribing Sirius into getting me with that snowball. Anyway, I was going to go steal that camera from James, but he went over to Lily to 'protect' himself and next thing I knew, I had a huge amount of freezing snow in my shirt."

Harry was laughing hysterically by the end. He knew it wouldn't really be all that funny to someone else, but to him the story meant so much that he couldn't help but feel more happiness that usual. Plus, the picture was reenacting the story as Remus told it, complete with Remus glaring menacingly at Sirius and James hiding the camera behind his back.

Remus looked very pleased to see Harry so content, and Harry felt infinite gratitude toward him.

"Thank you so much, Prof... Remus," Harry said, grimacing at his mistake.

"Any time, Harry," Remus said with a smile. "And it's okay that you aren't quite used to calling me that, yet."

Harry sighed. "I don't think I'll ever be. I think I ought to try calling you something else, like... how about 'Uncle Moony'?"

To Harry's surprise, Remus started laughing.

"Erm... I wasn't aware that that was funny," Harry said awkwardly.

Remus shook his head, smiling brightly. "No, it's just that your dad used to tease me that he was going to have you call me that when you were old enough to keep names straight. I think he got you to say it once or twice."

Harry smiled. "Uncle Moony it is, then." They sat there in contented silence for a few moments, until suddenly Harry looked at his watch. "Oh, bugger. I told the Weasleys that I'd be back in time for lunch." He stood. "I'm sorry, but I have to go. Thanks for the tea."

Remus stood as well. "Any time Harry. Really. I know I haven't been around much. Would you like me to owl you when I get back from my next mission?"

Harry's eyes widened. "Really? You'd do that?"

Remus could have laughed at Harry's innocence, but just continued to smile. "Of course. I like spending time with you."

"Yeah, I'd like that," said Harry, grinning broader that he thought possible. "I hope it's soon." He walked toward the door. "Right, well, bye Uncle Moony."

Remus grinned, shaking his head and smiling as he waved goodbye. Harry stepped out into the front yard and disappeared with a pop.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: THIS HAS NOT BEEN BETA-ED! I just wrote it and haven't re-read it so I could get it to you! Please be patient with errors!**

Gravestones

Chapter 2

Remus Lupin opened the door to his comfortable home and quietly shut it, magically locking it several times before walking drowsily through his living room and into his bedroom. It had been a very long few weeks of sleeping in caves in the mud and slime, and then an eternally long order meeting after that. He was ready to crawl into bed and never leave. He took off his very dirty shoes and shoved them under his rickety cot so the smell wouldn't reach him as easily. He didn't bother to change anything, he was so exhausted. He simply pulled back the covers and fell in to bed. As soon as he closed his eyes, however, he remembered something that made him feel wide awake.

"Harry!" he muttered, sitting up in bed, grabbing his wand and lighting it. _How could I have forgotten?_ He quickly grabbed a piece of parchment and searched the house for a quill before finally finding one under the sink in the bathroom (how it had gotten there was a mystery to him). He sat down on his bed and ignored it's creaking as he set out to write his letter.

_Harry-_

_I have just returned from a mission and was wondering if you would like to visit me sometime. I will be home for about a week, so whatever time is convenient for you, feel free to drop by._

_-Uncle Moony_

Once finished, he quickly folded the note and tapped it with his wand to magically seal it. Then he sat back and looked at his handiwork in satisfaction. Well, he was satisfied for a moment until he realized that he didn't have an owl.

"Bother," he muttered, wracking his brain for a way to send his message.

He could always send a message via his Patronus, but Harry had never received communication in such a way. He could send it through the Floo Network, but that was dangerous. Or perhaps he could simply apparate there? Well then, what was the point of the message if he was already there?

He decided he must be awfully tired, because if was very unlike him to be so disoriented and forgetful. He concluded that a good night's sleep was in order. Laying back down, Remus closed his eyes and succumbed to sleep almost immediately.

Remus woke up late the next morning to distant rapping sounds. Rubbing his eyes, he sat up and groggily got out of bed. Sighing and wishing that woodpeckers would go on a very long holiday, he walked across his small living room and wrenched his front door open.

"Er, hey Uncle Moony," said Harry. Remus looked at him quizzically as Harry appeared to be stifling a laugh. "Sleep well?" he asked.

Remus looked a Harry confusedly for a moment before Harry cracked a grin and pointed to his hair. Remus' eyes widened and he turned to the mirror that lay on his bookshelf across the room. He grimaced upon seeing his hair all mussed, worse than Harry's, even. He also noted that his face was covered with scraggly hairs and he was in desperate need of a bath. Then he allowed his eyes to focus past himself, and he saw Harry still standing in the doorway, shifting awkwardly on his feet.

"Oh, Harry come on in!" Remus said hurriedly, rushing back toward the door and ushering Harry in before closing the door behind him. Harry smiled awkwardly and stood near the door as Remus went into the kitchen and made some tea. "Have you eaten breakfast?" he called over the whistling of the kettle.

"Er, yes, and lunch to," Harry called back, pointing to the clock that hung above the fireplace. It was 2:30 in the afternoon.

"Right," Remus said, magically finishing up the tea in record time and heading over the living room. "Go ahead and sit down." He set the tea on the small table next to the couch and they both sat down.

"I'm sorry if I woke you," said Harry, taking the cup Remus offered him.

"Nonsense," Remus replied. "It is much too late in the day to be sleeping. As a wise men once said, 'Early to bed, Early to rise, makes man healthy, wealthy, and wise.'"

Harry nodded. "Benjamin Franklin said that, right?"

Remus' eyes widened in surprise. "I'm impressed. You know your Muggle Enlightenment philosophers."

Harry shrugged. "During primary school I paid a lot of attention to my school work. Not much else to do at the Dursleys'."

Remus smiled sadly at the boy – _No, man_ – sitting in front of him. "I'm sorry you had to go through that," he said sincerely.

Harry shrugged again. "It's not like it was your fault."

Sighing Remus took a sip of his tea before continuing. "I'm afraid it was, Harry. I should have taken you in-"

"Uncle Moony, no offense, but you and I both know that you didn't have the assets to support the two of us," Harry said sadly. "Besides, you're a werewolf. Isn't there a law against that or something?"

Remus nodded his head dolefully. "Yes, I'm afraid so."

They fell silent for a moment, thinking about the past and wishing things were different when Remus finally spoke up.

"Harry, how did you know I was home?" he asked curiously.

Harry bit his lip and smiled sheepishly. "I figured you would have to tell the Order when you got back, so I asked Mr. Weasley if he could tell me when you returned. He told me this morning that you got home late last night."

Remus smiled, grateful to Arthur for doing that.

"So," said Remus, "Any news since I've been gone?" He realized he sounded very much like a parent. And while the Marauder in him hated the idea of becoming so down to earth, he couldn't help but like the idea of looking after someone, even if that someone didn't at all need looking after.

Harry shrugged and smiled. "Not much. I've got my own place, now."

Surprised, Remus set down his tea, which he had long forgotten about, and leaned back. "Really? How is it?"

Harry seemed to light up as he thought about it. "It's not anything special. It's a small apartment in London, not far from the Leaky Cauldron."

"And..." Remus pressed.

"And, well, it's got two bedrooms, a small bathroom, and a kitchen. There's a little living room too. It

is kind of like this house, actually," Harry said, gesturing around him.

Remus was impressed that Harry had showed such independence. Then again, Harry had always been an independent person. He didn't have a choice.

"Well, congratulations," said Remus, "Is there anything you want me to help you with?"

Harry shook his head. "No, I don't have much, so it was easy to move."

Again, they fell into an awkward silence. Remus sighed. _It's going to take a lot to get comfortable around each other, _he thought.

"So, the other day," Remus said, trying to keep the conversation alive, "I was walking over to Widow Mercanter's – she lives down the street – and I remembered a hilarious situation that happened between her and Lily when you were about eight months old. Would you like to hear about it?"

Remus wasn't at all surprised when Harry nodded vigorously. He knew that the memory of Lily and James was something Harry desperately clung to, even if he didn't realize it. So Remus scooted forward in his seat and prepared to tell Harry the story as he himself relived every detail.

"_Come on, Remus, it's really no big deal. She won't think any less of you."_

_It was a chilly late September afternoon. Lily had decided to have a little fun with the old widow next door to the Potters. Mrs. Mercanter had insisted on seeing Harry as soon as she heard he'd been born. Now that Lily was well enough, she'd decided to make things more exciting._

_Remus sighed and looked Lily in the eye. "James has rubbed off way too much on you," he said with a small smile._

"_Hey, Moony, what is that supposed to mean?" James asked, advancing on Remus threateningly, though Remus could tell he was rather amused. "I tell you, when Padfoot gets back from sniffing around that one girl's house, we're going to have to reintroduce you to the Marauder ways. Three years out of Hogwarts and you're back to your insufferable self!"_

"_Quiet you two!" Lily hissed before walking up the steps to Widow Mercanter's door, cradling baby Harry in her arms. Without waiting for the other two to catch up, she rapped on the oak door sharply._

_The door opened and an old woman poked her head through cautiously. "Who is it?" she said hoarsely._

"_Why Mrs. Mercanter, it's me," said Lily pushing the door open gently. "I've brought my son to meet you."_

_Mrs. Mercanter's face lit up and she quickly opened the door. "Come in! All of you, come in!"_

_Lily smiled and the troupe made their way into the house. Remus followed James and Lily, feeling awkwardly out of place and nervous about what Lily was going to do to this poor woman._

"_Sit, sit! I'll make some tea," said the widow, looking at Harry lovingly before rushing into the kitchen and magicking the kettle to start heating up. In a moment it was done and she quickly brought the tea into the sitting room and set it down before gathering Harry in her arms._

"_Oh, aren't you such a darling?" Mrs. Mercanter said in an annoyingly high voice that made Remus wince. "You have your mama's eyes. I can already tell. But I can't see much of your father in you, she said with a frown. "In fact, you look rather like Mr. Lupin over there." She paused for a moment in thought before her eyes widened and she looked between Lily and Remus in a state of panic._

_Remus smiled inwardly, looking at Harry's temporarily sandy brown hair. Lily had changed his hair color just before they had left for the house. Lily was right; this was very entertaining._

"_Is there something wrong, Mrs. Mercanter?" Lily asked with pretend concern. "You've gone ghostly pale."_

"_I… I… Well, it's just that… em… Would you like some more tea?" she said shakily, handing Harry to Remus. Then she suddenly realized what she was doing, took Harry out of his arms, and handed him to James. "Terribly sorry, James. He was closest, you see."_

_James exchanged a smirk with Remus, seeing that Remus was actually the farthest away._

"_So… erm… his name is Harry _Potter_, correct?" the widow asked nervously._

"_Why of course it is, Mrs. Mercanter," said Lily with a smile._

"_What did you think it was, Harry Lupin?" James asked with a laugh. _

_On cue, as they had practiced, Remus looked at Lily with a look of pure terror. James noticed and looked at his friend in fury._

"_How could you, Moony?" he asked in pretend outrage. "After all I've done for you?"_

_Remus tried to get up and run out of the house, But James had handed Harry off to Lily and then jumped on Remus. They proceeded to roll on the floor, trying hard to contain their laughter at Mrs. Mercanter's shouts._

"_Please stop! There must be some sort of misunderstanding. I mean, James, I know Remus violated your trust and stole your wife, but- Lily, what are you laughing at? This is all your fault, you know."_

_Lily just laughed harder, motioning for James to get up and explain. James obliged, now laughing as well, and took Harry in his arms again. He quickly waved his wand and Harry's features were back to normal._

"_Sorry Mrs. Mercanter," James said sheepishly after his laughter had subsided. "We couldn't resist having a little fun. Don't worry. Remus has done nothing wrong, and nor has Lily. But now we really must be going. Little Harry here is falling asleep."_

_The widow just stood there with her mouth open, watching them compose themselves and walk out her door._

When Remus had finished, he saw Harry laughing as if his life depended on it. His eyes were watering, and he was shaking with mirth. Remus smiled broadly, loving to see Harry so care free at a time like this.

"Did you… seriously… do that?" Harry gasped, trying desperately to calm down.

Remus nodded, chuckling himself. "I'm surprised the poor widow didn't have a heart attack."

"I can't believe that woman would believe that," said Harry, wiping his eyes. "I can't believe my mum would _do_ that."

"Oh, your mum was definitely a devious one," said Remus, waving his wand over his tea to reheat it and then quietly taking a sip. "It took the widow a month to trust her again, and she only did because she wanted to see you."

"You said you recently visited her?" Harry asked. "Do things ever get awkward?"

"Not really," Remus said. "She is sort of senile now and has forgotten all about it, as far as I can tell."

Harry smiled a little and then leaned back against the couch. There was contented silence for a moment before Harry spoke again, this time nervously.

"Uncle Moony?" Harry asked. "Why don't you have any stories that include Peter?"

Remus sighed. He knew this question would come. "Peter wasn't around much after we left Hogwarts. We never knew where he was, but didn't really worry. He was always sort of a tag-a-long. Of course, now I know why and I can't help but wish I had paid more attention."

Harry bit his lip. "Why… why were you ever friends with him in the first place?"

"Pity," Remus answered immediately. "Nothing more than that. He was an asset in some ways, but really, it was pity."

Harry waited a moment, and then stood.

"Well, I ought to be going," he said, holding out his hand for Remus to shake. "Thanks for the tea and the story."

Remus shook his head. "Harry, put that hand away." He pushed Harry's hand out of the way and pulled him into his arms. "Come over any time, you hear?"

Harry nodded before pulling back. "Thanks, Uncle Moony." He quickly waved goodbye, walked out the door and disapparated. Remus sighed and sank into his chair, wishing with all his heart that Harry could have his parents again.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to wait this long on this fic. I promise it's not abandoned, nor shall any of my fics ever be. How do I reinforce that promise? Well, here's another chapter! PLEASE review. This is my neglected fic. I need some confidence to keep it going! Cheers!**

Gravestones

Chapter 3

Harry sighed and stepped up to the now familiar door of number nine, Godric's Hollow, shifting his bag to his left hand so he could knock with his right. He loved visiting Uncle Moony, and always looked forward to seeing him, but this weekend he had a few more sinister things on his mind.

He raised his hand to knock and almost had it to the door when the door opened.

"Harry, you know you don't have to knock. Come on in." Remus opened the door, smiling broadly and ushering Harry into his humble abode. Harry smiled as Remus pulled him in to a one-armed hug. It had taken a while for them both to get used to that, and no matter what, it still made Harry want to grin from ear to ear.

"I conjured up another bed this morning," Remus said, taking Harry's small bag and leading the way to his small room. Harry's jaw dropped upon entering. The room was twice as big, had sunlight flooding through new curtains, and now held a second, rather inviting bed. "What do you think?" Remus asked nervously.

"Brilliant!" Harry said excitedly, but then suddenly felt reluctant. "This must have cost you a small fortune, Uncle Moony. I mean, not that I don't appreciate it, but I can easily sleep on the floor. I'm sort of used to it-"

"We'll have none of that," Remus said sternly and set Harry's bag on the bed on the far side of the room near the window.

Harry smiled a bit guiltily as Remus turned around.

"So, what is it you have to do this weekend?" Remus asked conversationally. Harry couldn't help but shift awkwardly on his feet and look away. He knew he had to tell Remus, and now was the time, but he couldn't help but dread it.

"Do you, er, mind if I tell you something?" Harry asked, wincing at how pathetic he sounded.

"Of course not, Harry. What is it?" Remus asked with slight concern in his voice.

Harry sighed. "Perhaps… you ought to sit down."

Remus gave Harry a quizzical look before settling down onto his own freshly made bed. Harry remained standing, beginning to pace.

"Do you remember the reason Voldemort wanted to lead me into the Department of Mysteries?" Harry asked distractedly.

"Yes…" Remus frowned. "The prophecy - but it was destroyed. Wasn't it?"

"Yeah, it was," Harry answered. "But Dumbledore told me what it said."

Harry saw Remus stiffen out of the corner of his eye. Without waiting any longer, he allowed the words to tumble out of his mouth.

"And apparently I have to become a martyr or a murderer – there's no other way around it. I'm the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord apparently, yet I can't live while he's still around and so now I'm looking for these-"

"Whoa, Harry, slow down, there," Remus said desperately, holding up a pale, shaky hand. Harry looked up at him sheepishly, realizing that he had begun kicking the wall in frustration.

"Sorry, Uncle Moony." He quickly flicked his wand and fixed the rather large dent. "I love that I can do that now," he said with a small smile. Then he shook his head and looked back up at Remus. "Erm, as I was saying, I have to look for these, er, objects, called Horcruxes."

Harry was startled to see Remus' face pale even more. He hadn't told anyone but Ron and Hermione about his "Mission" (as Ron called it), but he suspected that most people would look bored or maybe a bit confused at the mention of such an obscure brand of Dark Magic. Remus looked positively sickened, which only meant one thing.

"You know what those are."

It wasn't a question, as Harry had intended it to come out, but it still sounded just as startled as he felt. Remus nodded, rubbing his forehead as if it were feverish.

"But... how?" Harry asked curiously.

Remus swallowed heavily. "I… read. A lot."

Harry would have laughed at such a needless statement if it had been about anything else. As it was, the corner of his mouth twitched a bit, not that Remus noticed.

"You said there is more than one Horcrux?" Remus said, now turning a bit green.

"Yeah. Dumbledore suspected seven, one of them being Voldemort himself. I've already taken care of one, and Dumbledore another. We were so close when… when Dumbledore…" Harry didn't need to finish the sentence. If anyone understood, it would be Remus.

"Harry, I… I'm so… how do you deal with this?" Remus asked desperately, scooting to the edge of his seat, as if pleading with Harry to break down and cry about how his life was so horrible and say he just wanted to crawl onto Mummy's lap.

"It took me a while to… get a handle on things. But now I can't see how I ever expected anything different," Harry said carefully. The truth was that he still thought there was absolutely no hope for him. _Two down, four to go. I'm a seventeen year old against the now most powerful wizard on Earth. Who am I kidding?_

_The whole wizarding world, _his more cynical side thought bitterly.

"The whole wizarding world what, Harry?"

Harry realized he had spoken aloud. "Nothing." Remus looked at him dubiously. "No, honestly, it's not important." He changed the subject quickly. "Listen, I've told you this because I trust you implicitly. You absolutely can't tell _anyone_ about this."

Remus nodded solemnly. "Merlin, Harry. When did you grow up so fast?"

Harry shrugged, and then looked at the clock above the closet absentmindedly._ Tick tock, tick tock._

"Harry?" Remus asked, bringing him out of his thoughts. "Is there something you want to say?"

_Great Gobstones, Remus can read me just like that blasted clock. _"Erm… well, I was wondering if you wouldn't mind… telling another story?"

Remus laughed at the abrupt subject change. "Certainly, Harry. Have a particular event in mind?"

Harry grinned. "Yeah. I wanted to know… how on earth did _you_ end up being a Marauder?"

Remus looked startled for a moment, and then his face became stern. "Harry James Potter, I think I ought to be insulted!"

Harry laughed out loud, and so did Remus, and before Harry new it, they were immersed into another story from twenty seven years ago.

_Remus walked down the seventh floor corridor, his feet echoing on the stone. He was coming back to Gryffindor tower from the library, and it was just before curfew. He was in a bit of a hurry, since he didn't want to be seen as a rule-breaker after only a month into his first year. He was absentmindedly going over the incantation for the Levitation Charm when he heard muffled whispering._

"_Shh... Mrs. Norris will be here any minute you ruddy idiot!" _

"_Well it's not my fault your as agile as an ox in a mire!"_

"_You don't even know what a mire is!"_

"_True, but neither do you!"_

_Remus rolled his eyes. Of all the people to run into at this time of night. _

_He slowly inched toward the corner where the voices had come from and peeked around. Those to geniuses, Black and Potter, were trying to run and invisible trip wire across the corridor that led to Library. Unfortunately for them and fortunately for everyone else, they didn't know that all of the Hogwarts walls were jinxed so that you could only stick something to the wall by first removing the jinx and then placing a sticking charm on it. Neither was very deft in securing things the Muggle way, and had ended up tangling themselves into a huge mess._

_Remus watched from around the corner, smiling amusedly. He wished he could spend time with other kids who didn't care about school work for once. His mum had always said that was the most important thing, and education, but right now he was inclined to disagree. As much as he loved books, he often longed for… well, a social life. _

_Well, they obviously need some help. Maybe they could all benefit from each other? Remus quickly stepped around the corner. _

"_I think you'll find the task much easier if you flick your wand and say 'replius' before applying the 'adhesivo.'"_

_Black and Potter gasped and whirled around._

"_What do you want, bookworm?" Potter asked, trying to look menacing. It didn't fool Remus. _

"_How did you know we were here?" Black practically shouted, completely flabbergasted._

"_You both need a lesson in stealth." Remus walked forward and stretched out his hand. "Remus Lupin."_

_Black looked at him suspiciously, but Potter stared blankly at Remus for a moment before stepping forward and taking Remus' hand._

"_Wonderful to finally shake your hand, Remus Lupin. I am the wonderful James Potter, and this is the daft Sirius Black."_

_Sirius scowled at James before stepping forward and Shaking Lupin's hand as well._

"_For someone who's only known me for a month, Potty, you certainly take liberties with people's patience," Black said defensively._

_James rolled his eyes. "You'll get over it." He turned back to Remus. "So, Remus, what were you saying? Replius before adhesivo?"_

"_That's what we were going to try next," Sirius said, grinning. "After we burnt the castle down, of course."_

_They all laughed heartily._

"As it turned out, the trip wire didn't work anyway. Sirius and James had started arguing and before they got a chance to untangle and attach the string, and a trigger-happy prefect came. I had the sense enough to hide, but Sirius and your father were a little thick in those first few months."

Harry was smiling brightly at the though of his father so young and innocent. "So, was my father… erm, a bit thick?"

Remus laughed aloud, but at the look on Harry's face, he realized that it was an honest question and sobered a bit.

"Well, Harry, I suppose he was a bit like you, but not. You and he are both very intelligent. Could be top of your class if you applied yourselves. But you also have…"

"Luna Lovegood moments?" Harry supplied, picturing Luna describing "Loser's Lurgy" with her carrot earrings twirling.

Remus laughed. "Yes, exactly."

"Well, I dunno about being top of the class in my case, but my dad became an animagus, so he must have been pretty clever."

"Oh yes, he was. But you are too, Harry." Harry started to shake his head but Remus looked at him sternly. "I'm sure if you cared enough you could…" Remus trailed off and looked a bit uneasy. Harry knew what he'd been about to say.

"Save the world?" Harry asked quietly. He didn't want to think about this. He had been so happy, and now he was back to where he'd started. He found himself scowling and forced a smile back on his face. "Thanks, Uncle Moony. I think I'll go to bed now, if you don't mind."


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: It's finally up! Sorry, bu my mom disconnected the internet for ages, and I've finally been able to get back on. I hope y'all like it! It's not beta-ed, same as the other chapters.

Chapter 4

Where had the time gone?

Remus had asked himself that question perhaps every day of his life. Sometimes the feeling was morbid, remembering James, Lily, Sirius – even Peter. Sometimes he reflected on the speed of his life and was grateful that it seemed to be zooming by faster with every passing day. But now he was looking back at happy memories again, and for once in the past seventeen years he felt like he was back among his friends. He tried to pinpoint when this feeling had shown up in his life.

_When Harry came to Godric's Hollow, _came the immediate answer.

It was true. Ever since Harry had once again wheedled his way into Remus' heart, Remus had felt his life start to feel… well, worth living. He glanced at his bookshelf full of pictures and saw the most recent one, of him and Harry standing in front of a Christmas tree.

Why, the last Christmas was perhaps the happiest he'd had in years.

_Remus rapped sharply on the door of 401 Thames Plaza, kicking his feet together against the bitter cold. He'd never cared for London with weather like this, but he had promised Harry he'd be here._

_Suddenly, the door opened, and warmth flooded from inside the small flat._

"_Uncle Moony!" Harry said excitedly. "I'm so glad you could make it!" He quickly ushered Remus inside and took his cloak. Remus smiled gratefully and looked around Harry's flat for the first time._

_He was standing in a nice little entry way with tile flooring. A couple feet in it became carpeted with a soft blue and stretched across to the living room. The living room had a comfortable looking sofa facing the fireplace, as well as a coffee table that must have been an antique. A hallway branched off from the right of the sitting area and no doubt led to the bedroom and lavatory. To Remus' left was the kitchen, which also had tile flooring. The cupboards were made of a modest cedar and the small dining table appeared to be solid oak. A few dishes were drying themselves near the sink and a broom was trying to inconspicuously push itself into its cupboard near the far wall. _

"_This place is positively charming, Harry," Remus said with a smile, and watched Harry visibly relax upon hearing his approval. "And something smells quite good."_

_Harry grinned embarrassedly. "Thanks, it's not much. Dinner's in the oven. I'm just waiting for Ron and Hermione to show up." _

"_Oh dear," Remus said dramatically. "Am I to be the only adult here?"_

_Harry looked at him reproachfully. "Hey! We're all of age!"_

"_Not by my standards," Remus replied. To stave off a retort, he handed Harry a stack of neatly wrapped presents. "Happy Christmas," he grinned._

_Harry's eyes widened as he took the pile. There was one each for Harry, Ron, and Hermione. Harry grinned and ushered Remus into the living room, holding the presents close as they entered before setting them gently under his small Christmas tree. They both stood back for a moment, admiring it, before nearly jumping out of their skins as the doorbell rang._

_Remus heart skipped a beat at the smile the spread across Harry's face. He loved seeing Harry so happy. It was so rare these days._

_Harry rushed to the door and opened it, ushering his quests inside._

"_Hey mate," Ron said excitedly, shoving gifts into Harry's arms. "Wow, you cleaned up the place." Ron gazed around approvingly. _

_Hermione smiled, he cheeks slightly flushed from the cold outside. "Hello, Harry." She hugged him in a loving way that reminded Remus of a sort of sister. Hermione looked past Harry. "Hi, Remus!" she ran up and gave her old professor a hug as well, and Remus laughed merrily at her excitement._

_Ron grinned and held out his hand, which Remus shook warmly. "Good to see you, Remus," he said warmly. Remus was awestruck with how much he had matured since he'd last been around him._

"_Hello Ron, Hermione," Remus nodded. _

"_So, er… would you like dinner?" Harry asked awkwardly._

"_Honestly, Harry, you act like you've invited a bunch of strangers!" Hermione exclaimed. "Here, let's go into the kitchen before Harry stutters us to death."_

_Remus and Ron laughed while Harry blushed furiously, shuffling into the kitchen._

"_Right, well I'll just get the roast out of the oven, and Hermione, can you grab the vegetables on the stove?" Harry asked. Hermione nodded and in only a few moments they had a delicious meal before them of pot roast, homemade bread (Hermione had brought it), steamed carrots and potatoes in gravy, and a generous amount of butterbeer._

_They all dug in, chattering happily amongst each other and complements the various items on the menu. They laughed and joked until their sides ached and finally the meal was done. Remus gladly helped Hermione with the dishes while Harry and Ron settled into the living room._

"_Finally!" Ron exclaimed dramatically when Hermione and Remus emerged from the kitchen. "Now let's open presents!"_

_Presents were handed all around and a flurry of paper and exclamations ensued._

"_Thanks so much, Ron!" Harry grinned, holding up a package of decoy detonators, specially made by Weasley Wizard Wheezes for their benefactor upon a familial request. "These will come in handy."_

"_Ooo, Remus, you shouldn't have!" Hermione exclaimed, her eyes sparkling. She held up a string of beautiful pearls that had been in Remus' family for generations. _

"_Yes I should have," Remus confirmed. "I'm certainly not going to wear them!" _

_They all laughed and Ron opened his next present, from Hermione. _

"_Wow, Hermione!" Ron nearly shouted. "How'd you get a hold of this?"_

"_I'm not a liberty to say…" Hermione said with a smirk._

"_Is that… mint condition wizard cards?" Remus asked in astonishment._

"_Not only mint condition, but all of the ones I was missing!" Ron's eyes were bugging out. "This makes my collection worth thousands of galleons!" Ron turned in surprise as Harry snorted. "What?"_

"_Sorry," Harry said, not looking sorry at all, "but I'm still trying to grasp that fact that you are _still_ collecting wizard cards."_

"_Why you…" Ron chucked a pillow at Harry's head, which Harry quickly banished into a nearby wall, laughing._

_Hermione spoke up. "Harry, looks like you have the last gift to open," she said._

_Harry pushed all the wrapping away and lifted up his last gift. From Remus. Remus' heart started beating faster, hoping against hope that Harry would like it._

_It seemed to take an eternity for the wrapping to come off. Remus suspected Harry was savoring it. When Harry finally got full view of the gift, he gasped._

_It was a picture of the Potter family from sixteen and a half years before. James had his arm slung around Lily's shoulder, grinning from ear to ear. Lily held little Harry in her arms, bouncing him up and down on occasion. They were standing in front of a Christmas tree, all looking happier than humanly possible. The frame was of a deep cherry wood and it was engraved, "To our darling Harry on his seventeenth Christmas. Love, Mum and Dad."_

_Harry's eyes were shining and his hands trembled slightly as he clutched the frame. He stared at it for a whole minute before finally looking up at Remus. His facing was glowing with gratitude and a tear rolled down his cheek as he gasped, "Thank you, Uncle Moony. Thank you." _

Remus sighed as he pulled out of his reverie. He wished things could have gone back to that moment and stayed that way forever. But Harry had a duty to save the world and Remus had a duty to stay by his side and watch over him.

The war had taken a turn for the worse of late. Things were getting more intense. Battles were ensuing. Harry reported back to Remus on the progress of the Horcruxes, sometimes more than a little physically harmed. His throat hitched as he recalled the time when he had found Harry on his doorstep, unconscious and covered in blood. Things were getting worse; there was no doubt about it.

Remus' ears perked as he heard a loud knock on the door. He sighed and slowly started to get up when there was another loud knock. _What's so urgent?_ Remus thought idly as he hurried to the door and flung it open.

"Remus," Ron wheezed, bent double and gasping for breath. "Come quickly! I think it's happening."

Remus didn't need telling twice. He ran into the house, snatched his healing kit and a cloak before rushing back to meet Ron. His heart filled with dread as he apparated away.

_This is it_, he thought. _The final battle._


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: You'll never believe this!! It's taken me what, 8 months? I've felt like my identity has been ripped from me since I've slacked on writing. I finally sat down and finished this last chapter today. I wrote a good four pages in about an hour. I've had this story planned for so long, it was just itching to come out. Anyway, I wanted to let y'all know that I love your reviews and support and suggestions (although suggestions right now might be a bit pointless, with my fanfic career ending with the next chapter). It puts a huge smile on my face and helps me write my own stories (the ones that aren't owned by JKR).

By the way, it may take a couple of years, but keep a lookout for my name, J. Holtemore, in the bookstores. I have books planned and I'm gonna write 'em! So right now it's... September, 2007. Let's see how long it takes me, shall we?

I really hope y'all like this chapter! I worked hard to pump it out. It's obviously completely AU now, what with DH, but who cares? Again, like the rest of this story, it hasn't been beta-ed. Sorry.

**Gravestones**

Chapter 5

"ARGH!"

Harry screamed as he ripped a large shard of splintered wood out of his shoulder, collapsing to the ground as he did so. It felt as if his arm had been chopped off from his collar bone to his arm pit. He looked down at his wound to see a large gash where the shard had been lodged and it was now bleeding freely.

Gasping, he kicked off his shoes and pushed his socks off with his feet. With his good arm he grabbed the socks, shoved one into his mouth and wrapping the other awkwardly around his injured shoulder. Pain shot down his arm with the slightest movement, and he bit down on the sock in his mouth to prevent screaming.

As he slowly fumbled with the knot, he couldn't help but notice how battered he was. Aside from the most evident wound in his shoulder, he also had scratches and bruises everywhere, as well as a nasty headache that had persistently nagged him ever since he'd regained consciousness. What was more, he felt very ill, and his shoulder was definitely not helping.

Finally the sock was secured, albeit precariously. It was simple and not the best solution, but it was the only choice he had at the moment. He spat the other sock out and pushed himself onto his bare feet, wobbling slightly as another wave of sickening pain washed over him. When his vision cleared, he looked about.

It was dark. Dust hung in the air, making it difficult to breathe. He could vaguely make out distorted shapes in the cloudy darkness, which he assumed were large sections of the walls and ceiling that had caved in. Bookshelves, papers, chairs and desks were all scattered about his feet or under sections of debris. He stepped to the side and nearly fell. It appeared that the middle of the stone floor had a great crack through it, running from one end of the room to the other, and caused the floor to slope downwards dangerously.

Harry sighed despairingly, trying to piece together the last couple of moments that had led up to this mess.

* * *

The Death Eaters had him surrounded. Ron and Hermione had their backs against his, and all three had their wands pointing between several different opponents. Harry saw MacNair was preparing to place a strong anti-apparition enchantment around the three, so he shouted to Ron and Hermione to apparate away.

"Harry James Potter, stop acting so noble," Hermione scolded without looking at him. "We're staying!"

"No way, Harry. We're not leaving you behind!" Ron shouted, shooting a stunner at a masked Death Eater and ducking as a shield rebounded it back on him. Harry felt a buzzing all around him and knew that MacNair had succeeded with the anti-apparition spell. He'd have to think of something else.

The ground at their feet began to shake and some of the Death Eaters looked confused. Apparently things were not going according to plan for them, and they became distracted. Harry took the opportunity to grab his friends by their robes and throw them behind a stone pillar. A cutting curse zoomed past him just as he was about to join them, so he changed directions and charged for another pillar a few feet away. The floor began to shake in earnest, and chunks began to fall from the ceiling, forcing the Death Eaters to take cover as well.

Harry thought quickly, looking for anything to help him get his friends out of there. He turned his head and felt a tightness around his neck. Reaching up, he fingered an old string with a small bottle cap attached to it. His emergency portkey, courtesy of Luna. It was set to go off in about 20 minutes, but that was too much time. He needed it to go off now.

He yanked at the string until it snapped and held the necklace out in his hand. He touched his wand to it and muttered _"Portus."_ He tapped the necklace once before muttering the first address he could think of. "_Number 9, Godric's Hollow," _he muttered. The little bottle cap necklace trembled a bit and glowed a dull white before settling back down. It was highly illegal to make an unauthorized portkey, but considering that Harry was sitting in the middle of a thrashed Ministry Archives Office, battling Death Eaters to the death, he thought he might be able to slip under the radar. He just hoped the portkey worked.

Sneaking a peek around the pillar and not seeing any killing curses zoom at his head, Harry took a chance. He stood up, and bolted from his cover. As he did, though, he kicked a book that had fallen on the floor, and the noise drew attention to himself.

"Oi, look over there!"

"Get him!"

And then he felt like he was running through fireworks. Dashing across the hard stone floor, he quickly dove behind the pillar that Ron and Hermione currently occupied.

"Harry, there you are!" Hermione exclaimed, looking relieved.

"Bloody hell, mate. Are you mad, prancing across the floor like that?" Ron said with wide eyes, though Harry could see more admiration in Ron's eyes than anything else.

"I'm mad as Lockhart," Harry said with a grin. _And you going to truly believe that in about one second,_ Harry thought grimly.

Ron grinned at Harry's comment when Harry suddenly cried, _"Incarcerous!"_

The grin slowly faded from Ron's face as he looked down to see his and Hermione's hands bound together tightly, his right to her left and her right to his left. Hermione looked stunned, staring blankly at the bindings. And then suddenly she was furious.

"Harry, I'll ring your neck at the end of this!" she hissed, trying to jerk her hand out of their confines. "Undo this!"

"I'm sorry," Harry said quietly, stepping back and shaking his head.

Hermione let out a scream of frustration. She tried to point her wand at the binding to undo it, but her wrist wouldn't allow any movement. Ron seemed to come out of his shock and tried to do the same thing, but to no avail.

"Harry, you prat, get us out of this right now!" Ron growled.

Harry looked at Ron sadly and was about to respond when he felt his portkey begin to vibrate. He quickly shoved it into their joined hands just in the nick of time.

They both opened their mouths to speak, shock written across their faces as they disappeared, leaving Harry alone.

"Goodbye," he mumbled, wondering if he'd ever see his friends again.

He wiped sweat from his brow and leaned against the pillar. The floor gave another almighty rumble that brought Harry to the ground.

"What's going on here?" a shrill female voice shouted.

"Silence, Bella. Our plan is underway. Come, we must leave. _Now._"

A cold trill ran down Harry's spine upon hearing those words. If the earthquakes were caused by Voldemort, Harry's job had just been made much more difficult.

As if on cue, the floor seemed to drop from his feet. The entire room began to quake with ferocity, rattling his brain. He tried to clutch at the stone pillar, but it was a smooth surface and there were no hand holds. The floor seemed to tilt and Harry began to slide out into the open. He rolled over and slammed his feet into a wall, digging it into a crevice.

He looked up at the ceiling to see the pillar he'd just been behind begin to collapse. It dislodged from the ceiling, causing large amounts of debris to fall all over the room, some of it landing on Harry. He quickly threw his arm over his face and scrunched into a ball, hoping nothing big would fall on him. The floor shook violently again, and Harry saw from beneath his arm that the floor had literally cleaved in two in the center. As the floor continued to jerk about, Harry was thrown to the side. He looked up just in time to see a bookshelf, broken into large fragments by stray spells and barely still in one piece, fall. The very top of it landed on his arm, and a large piece of oak gouged into his right shoulder.

Grunting under the pressure and the excruciating pain that made his eyes water, Harry edged his feet under the bookshelf and managed to kick it off of him. But the bit of wood was lodged so deep that it remained in his shoulder, twisting as the bookshelf tore away from it. A scream ripped from Harry's lips and he grasped his shoulder, waiting for the pain to pass, but it didn't. It made Harry's stomach roil. He rolled to his good side and retched, his stomach heaving up anything that was in it, which wasn't much. Groaning, Harry tried to scoot to a solid part of the wall, far away from any bookshelves or other falling objects.

The floor jolted harder than ever before. Harry was dragged across the floor again, head first. Only this time his injured arm prevented him from stopping himself. He watched as the opposite wall seemed to zoom closer and closer until it encompassed all his vision. He heard a sickening crack, and then there was blackness.

* * *

Harry shook his head in order to clear it from the sudden onslaught of memories. Unfortunately it caused his head injury, which he now remembered how he'd acquired, to protest. His vision swam and he quickly stopped, clasping his head in his hands.

What was that?

He could hear soft whispering, barely audible. At first he thought he might have hit his head a little too hard, until he noticed a faint light filtering through the fissure in the middle of the floor. The light refractedon the dust particles in the air to cause an eerie glow. The air was stuffy and uncomfortably warm, but Harry felt an unnatural shiver run down his spine.

So this was why there was an earthquake right in the heart of the Ministry of Magic, a building among the most protected in the entire wizarding world. There, right below him, lay the object of mystery that had caused him so much grief and confusion and anger. He stared, transfixed even in a time like this, by the breeze causing the veil to flutter as it hung from the stone arch. The soft whispering emanating from it both soothed his fast-beating heart and set the hairs on the back of his neck on edge.

And somehow he knew. He knew what he had to do and why it had to be done. There was no turning back.

His thigh had been wedged against a large chunk of debris, grounding him. He carefully extricated himself with his better arm, noting how loud the fall of debris seemed to be in comparison to the eerie silence he had been submerged in. Once completely free he sat down, gripped his wand firmly and pushed himself away from his grounding place, away from safety, and began to slide downward.

The incline was not enough to make him slide the entire length of the floor and drop down the twenty or so feet into the veil room, not to mention that he probably would not survive the fall, particularly in his current health. He slowly eased down to the ledge and looked at the drop. It was long; he would have to cushion himself somehow. He also noted that the room seemed to be empty, but he knew that wouldn't last long.

Harry carefully leaned over to the side and snatched up a chunk of stone about the size of his fist. He carefully set it in his lap and tapped it with his wand. It immediately began to change, shuddering at first and then flattening, its edges softening and squaring off until finally it lay still. He looked at his new pillow with a sort of disjointed satisfaction, like he would have been impressed if he had been anywhere else at any other time. _Hermione would have managed tassels too,_ he thought to himself.

Taking his newly made pillow out of his lap, he immediately dropped it through the great crack to the floor below. Seeing it land safely at the bottom, a few feet in between the dais and the stairs, he aimed his wand and muttered, "_Engorgio._" The pillow again trembled and grew larger and larger, first reaching the size of a cat, then perhaps a small boy, and eventually grew under Harry's urging to rival Hagrid's gigantic mass. Satisfied and feeling decidedly nauseous (it seemed his rudimentary sock bandage was not stemming the blood flow quite as well as he would have liked), he slipped off the ledge.

Even with the huge cushion, it was still a rather long fall, making Harry's stomach lurch a bit. With a grunt he landed on the pillow and immediately rolled into a standing position, wand at the ready.

"_So Harry Potter,"_ came a high-pitched hiss from his right, and he turned to see Lord Voldemort emerging from the shadows, _"you arrive at last."_

Harry wrinkled his nose in disgust. "Is there a particular reason why you are speaking in Parseltongue, or did you just have the urge to show off?" he spat, remaining rooted at the spot and refusing to even flinch in Voldemort's presence. "Where are your Death Eater goons?"

Voldemort only acknowledged that Harry spoke with a twisted smile. _"I do hope you are well?"_ he asked, continuing his use of Parseltongue.

"Oh, I'm brilliant, thanks," said Harry sarcastically, raising his wand a bit higher in his left hand. His right shoulder was still killing him. Perhaps literally. "And you?"

"_Oh, I have a feeling I'll be doing quite well in just a moment."_

And suddenly they were firing off spells as fast as they could. Red and green light rocketed by each other, and Harry was reminded of Christmas with Uncle Moony at his flat. With a pang of sadness at not being able to see his father's friend, he threw himself into the fight with ferocity. His feet were still bare and his head still hurt, but he kept at it. He fired off a stunner that ended up bouncing off the ceiling, making him wince at his bad aim.

"Don't you know you are no match for me?" Voldemort laughed, his high pitched voice ringing in Harry's ears.

"Ah, dropped the Parseltongue charade I see," Harry said as he threw a leg-locker curse at him, which was easily blocked.

"Why do you despise the hallowed language of the greatest wizards in history, Harry?" Voldemort asked, and though he seemed congenial, his slitted red eyes narrowed. "You were given a talent, Harry, to achieve greatness!"

He sent a Killing Curse Harry's way, and Harry dove behind his giant cushion just in time. The spell seared a hole clean through it causing transfigured cotton to float down onto him. Pushing himself to his knees behind his protective pillow, he brought the tip of his wand to his lips and muttered "_recodius_." A small bubble appeared at the tip of his wand, and he quickly spoke into it. As he spoke, the bubble grew, and when he had finished the bubble had grown to be a good four inches in diameter. He muttered "_fin,_" and then blew the bubble away from his wand, up into the air, where it hovered innocently.

He heard the whip of a cloak and knew Voldemort was Apparating around to where he sat. He quickly turned on the spot and landed back on his knees in the shadows just behind the dais without a sound.

"You see, Tom, I have an issue with using the language of cowardly creatures," Harry said, seeing Voldemort, far away from him, look up at his finally answered question. "It isn't my style."

Voldemort's eyes seemed to glow with his anger, and he turned on the spot. But Harry was ready for it, and he too apparated silently thirty feet away, so that he was standing atop the stairs.

Voldemort seemed to want to explode with frustration at seeing Harry disappear yet again. His back was to Harry, and so Harry spoke again.

"Have you ever wondered, Tom," Harry began, "exactly what the prophecy said? Exactly why I have been slipping-"

Voldemort spotted him and apparated to him, but again Harry was ready and apparated across the room, ducking behind a large chunk of debris that had fallen from the room above and continued where he left off.

"-from your grasp for all these years?"

"POTTER!" Voldemort screeched, his face twisting into a snarl so inhuman, so unearthly, that even the walls seemed to shrink from it.

Harry's eyes widened and he quickly took a step back, losing his footing and falling. Voldemort saw this and began to move toward him.

Harry quickly stood and shouted, _"Relashio!"_ pointing his wand at the speech bubble he had created. The bubble popped loudly and his own voice rang out, magnified.

"_The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches, born to those who thrice defied him. Born as the seventh month dies. And the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not. And either must die at the hand of the other, for neither can live while the other survives."_

As Harry's recorded voice was speaking, he was crawling forward, stealthily moving ever closer to the veil. By the time his words had finished, he was already on top of the dais. He could see Voldemort, who had stood transfixed, listening to the prophecy. And then Harry spoke in a commanding voice that caused Voldemort to lift his snakelike, inhuman eyes.

"All of your Horcruxes are destroyed, Tom," Harry said, backing up against the veil. The whispering behind it was growing louder so that he felt he had to yell over them, though Voldemort didn't seem to notice them. He was too busy staring in shock at what Harry had revealed. "All 6 pieces of your soul that lay in other objects. Every last one of them, down to your pitiful, disgusting, cowardly snake."

Voldemort took a step back, stunned.

"And now, Tom, we are equal," Harry said. "Harry James Potter against Tom Marvolo Riddle."

Something inside the insane, unloved mind of Harry's worst enemy seemed to snap. Harry felt the ground quake again and saw Voldemort trembling in fury. His power was waiting to be unleashed, eager to burst from him and incinerate everything in its path. And Harry knew that this was moment.

"_Avada Kedavra!" _Voldemort screeched.

"_Expelliarmus!" _Harry yelled.

Immediately the two wands connected, the red and green lights joining in the middle just as it had three years ago. The wands shook and trembled under the power issuing from the two wizards, unable to sustain such tremendous amounts of magic. Harry's wand began to grow hot under his grip and a cage of light began to spread from the center of the connection point. But Harry did not wait for _priori incantatem_. He did not wait to see his parents as he had three years previously. Instead, he jerked his wand backward. The connection did not break, because unlike all those years ago, Harry was strong, and much more in control. As Harry heaved against his wand, Voldemort was lifted off his feet and came careening toward Harry.

It seemed to happen as if in slow motion, and Harry watched as Voldemort's eyes widened. Sheer terror shone on his face as Harry had never seen. Harry himself was trembling and aware of ever fiber of his being as the rope of the two spells reeled Voldemort in, arching as it neared Harry. Voldemort was now near enough to touch... Finally they collided with a crash, and the built up magic of their unfinished spells exploded around them, sending Harry flying through the air.

And then all went dark.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Okay, this is the very last chapter of Gravestones, and the last chapter of my fanfic career. No need to put me on alert anymore, since I shan't be writing fanfic. But you can keep checking my profile every once in a while, because I will post there on what's happening with my book I am writing.

I started planning ideas for this chapter pretty much right after I finished Half-Blood Prince (July 16th, 2005). It has been stuck in my head, refusing to leave, ever since. I wrote it down this evening and felt immense satisfaction in doing so. I really love this chapter. I think it, combined with the previous one, are perhaps the best chapters I've ever written of any of my fanfics. You may disagree, and you can tell me so! Basically, _**PLEASE REVIEW!**_ Enjoy!

**Gravestones**

Chapter 6

"How long has it been since he did this?" Remus asked quickly.

"No more than a quarter of an hour. We had to untie ourselves."

Ron, Hermione, and Remus were bolting down the Ministry Atrium to the lifts. The Ministry was oddly deserted compared to the previous times Remus had been there. Granted, he'd only been there a few times – people in the Ministry did not take kindly to werewolves in their workplace. The empty hall caused their heavy footsteps to echo on the hard wood floors and seemed to accentuate their labored breathing. But something was wrong. Very, very wrong.

"I thought you said there were Death Eaters!" Remus called to Ron and Hermione, who were a bit ahead of him.

"There were-"

Hermione stopped in her tracks, grabbing Ron's shirt to stop him as well. Remus skidded to a halt beside them and watched as at least two dozen Death Eaters began to emerge for the lifts. They immediately started pelting Unforgivables at them and the three dove behind an outcropping of wall where the fireplaces began. Remus immediately began throwing stunners around the edge without even looking to aim.

"We need help! We need to get to Harry!" Hermione shouted, her eyes alight with fear as she ducked just in time to miss a jet of red light.

Remus nodded. He quickly assembled a message in his head. _We need help. We're here in the Ministry, and I think Harry is here with Voldemort! Send everyone!" _He knew he sounded as desperate as he felt, but he needed them now. He couldn't lose Harry too…

"_Expecto Patronum!"_ he shouted, and immediately a burst of light issued from his wand. He watched as a his Patronus sped away to deliver his message. Then he immediately returned to the battle.

Hermione had blasted a hole in the side wall between the fireplaces, had into one of them for better cover and was now hurling some pretty nasty curses. Ron remained at their original post, lying down on his stomach and aiming every hex he could think of at the Death Eaters. And while both of them were doing extremely well, enough to make an ex-professor very proud, they simply could not penetrate through the overwhelming amount of Death Eaters that outnumbered them eight to one. They were moving in much too close for comfort, and Remus had to do something about it.

He looked quickly to the right and saw the Fountain of Magical Brethren, damaged in the last struggle between light and dark a few years previously, sitting nearby in the perfect position to provide him cover. Without thinking, he bolted across the open ground, dodging a sudden onslaught of spells crashing around him and ricocheting everywhere. Near enough, he dove behind the fountain but hadn't quite been fully covered before he was hit with a Cruciatus Curse in the leg. Screaming in agony, he jerked and twisted under the fiery pain until he accidentally rolled the rest of the way behind the fountain and the curse lifted. He took a deep breath to collect himself and suddenly noticed that the atrium seemed to be louder than before. He looked around.

It seemed the Order had arrived. Even though they had lost many throughout the previous few months, he still saw familiar faces and his heart burst with gratitude. Mad-eye was there, sending multiple spells in quick succession, turning his countering Death Eater into a pulp. Kingsley was battling two at once, but holding his own, his wand arm moving in a blur. Molly Weasley was warring against a foe bent on her death and doing extremely well. There were many others, at least fifteen in total (many of them Weasleys), all fighting courageously.

Remus shook his head. What was he waiting for? Ron and Hermione said Harry was in the Ministry Archives Office. That was the third to last level in the building. He had to get to the lifts.

He peered up from behind the fountain and saw that the Death Eaters seemed sufficiently distracted. He brought his wand to the ready and bolted from his cover. He threw stunners right and left, trying to help others and avoid getting hit. He dodged a Death Eater backing up against a barrage of curses sent by no other than Minerva McGonagall, and then he was in the clear. He bolted for the lifts.

"Where do you think you're going?" screeched a horrible voice from his left and a hot spell zinged past his left shoulder.

"Bellatrix," Remus hissed, turning slowly to face her, hatred coursing through his veins.

Bellatrix Lestrange smirked. "Miss me?"

"Absolutely," Remus said with a contradicting deathly glare. Before she could even open her mouth to comment, he shouted, _"Stupefy!"_

Her eyes widened and she barely raised a shield in time, but Remus was already shouting out more.

"_Incarcerous, tarantellegra, petrificus totalus!"_ She of course blocked all of these, back on her game, but then Remus nonverbally thought, _"Levicorpus!"_

Bellatrix shrieked as she was pulled into the air by her ankle, so startled that she actually dropped her wand.

"I'd say something clever, dear Bella, but you aren't worth the breath," Remus said with as much distaste as he could gather toward this horrible witch. Immediately he thought _"Liberacorpus"_ and she fell all the way to the ground with a crash. He heard a loud crack and knew her neck had snapped. She was unmistakably dead.

"For Sirius," he said as he stepped over her body.

Not willing to waste any more time, he ran to the lift. The gates seemed to take an age to rattle shut and the lift slowly moved downward.

"Come on… come on… Hang in there, Harry. Don't do anything stupid…" Remus muttered impatiently, feeling a drip of cold sweat trickle down his spine.

"Level Nine, Magic Legal Services, Wizarding Health and Nutrition Center, and Ministry Archives Offices," said the woman's cool voice.

The lift doors opened and he immediately bolted down the hall. Looking at all the doors, he searched for the correct name...

"Ministry Archives!" He exclaimed and quickly snatched up the door handle.

It was locked.

Without even thinking, without even trying to unlock the door, he pointed his wand at the handle and, with a loud explosion and a puff of smoke, blasted it apart. He kicked the door open and stepped inside.

"Harry?" he called, looking around.

The room was in ruins. Papers were strewn everywhere, some smoldering from stray spells. Shelves, desks, and chairs were all tipped over, most damaged to some degree. The great stone pillars that lined the room were all either dislodged or completely broken apart. The entire floor was broken in two, sloping downwards and caving into the room below.

Remus' ears perked. He thought he'd heard a voice, though it was muffled. It seemed to be coming from below. He carefully walked to the edge of the great fissure in the floor and looked down.

Harry was standing just below him. The side of his head had a thick stream of dried blood running down. He was littered with cuts and scratches, and he appeared to have a blood stained rag of some sort wrapped around his shoulder. His feet were bare, which Remus felt was rather odd, but he didn't have time to contemplate it as he saw Voldemort step into view. The Dark Lord seemed to be hissing something, although Remus couldn't be sure. He had to figure out how to get down there!

"Is there a particular reason why you're speaking in Parseltongue, or do you just feel like showing off?" Remus heard Harry ask as he turned, looking for something, anything, to get him down there. "Where are you're Death Eater Goons?"

_So he's down there by himself? _He looked down again saw a gigantic pillow below, but he couldn't very well drop down there right in between Harry and Voldemort.

There was more hissing, and then he heard Harry speak again. "Oh, I'm brilliant, thanks."

_No you're not, Harry! _Remus wanted to scream at him. _What are you doing?! _Then he got a closer look at the room Harry was standing in. _The Department of Mysteries!_ Remus knew how to get there. He stood and ran to the door. He heard more speaking, but ignored it, preferring to get there as soon as possible. Kicking the door back open, he bolted down the corridor to the lift and jumped on just as the doors were closing. It didn't take all that long to get down to the next level, and he quickly ran out of the lift and down the long dark corridor to the Department of Mysteries. The door, fortunately, was ajar. Bolting through it, he went straight across the circular room to the door directly to the right of the middle door. Wrenching it open, he dashed through. The long hallway seemed to bring him back in time to when he was running through the same corridor with Mad-eye and Tonks and Sirius…

He wrenched open the far door once he had reached it and before him was the veil room that had brought so many nightmares upon him. He arrived just in time to hear Harry's voice call out.

"-against Tom Marvolo Riddle."

Remus' heart dropped as he saw Harry standing on the dais, just in front of the veil. Voldemort's back was to him, but he knew that the most powerful dark wizard in history was furious beyond measure. The floor beneath them began to tremble, and just as Remus was about to take a step downward to intervene, although he knew it would end in his death, Voldemort and Harry shouted at the same time.

"_Avada Kedavra!" _

"_Expelliarmus!"_

Remus watched silent horror as the two spells, instead of crashing into their opponent, collided with one another, green meeting red in a bright flash of white. By Voldemort's posture, he seemed shocked and fearful, but Harry… Harry was ready. And Remus knew what he was about to do just before he did it.

"Harry, _no!"_ Remus called, but Harry did not hear.

James' son jerked his remarkable wand backward, yanking Voldemort as if they were playing tug-o-war. Either Voldemort was so unprepared that he couldn't defend himself, or Harry's magical strength had grown beyond what Remus had ever imagined, but Harry was able to lift Voldemort off his feet and pull him up to the dais at a ferocious speed. Voldemort seemed unable to let go of his wand and Remus heard an unearthly screech of terror as Voldemort crashed into Harry. When the two wizards made contact, the great white light in at the center of the spell connection suddenly burst forth, expanding in no more than a second and suddenly exploding with such raw power that it blasted Remus off his feet. The ceiling trembled and seemed to cave in further, gigantic chunks of debris falling everywhere. Great resounding crashes came from everywhere, making him feel as if his eardrums would explode. He covered his head and curled up, waiting for the tremors to stop.

Finally, the floor seemed to feel solid once more. Remus carefully peeked his head out from under his arms and blinked, waiting for the dust to clear. Shakily, he stood and beheld the room before him. The arch holding the veil was smashed, with only a small portion of it still standing. The great cushion that Harry no doubt created was completely buried by debris. Stone chunks the size of Muggle washing machines riddled the room, as well as many smaller pieces. There was no sign of Voldemort or Harry.

"Harry? _Harry!_"

Remus ran to where he had seen him last, right to the top of the dais. The only recognizable thing was a wand, which must have belonged to Voldemort, lying up against the remains of the stone arch, slightly splintered. He could not see Voldemort's body and easily concluded what had happened to it, but didn't give it a further thought.

"HARRY!" Remus bellowed. He looked around wildly, and out of the corner of his eye saw a spot of white. A hand. Harry's hand.

"Harry! Harry, I'm coming." Remus scrambled over large chunks of stone to the edge of the room. As he came up to Harry, he saw a streak of blood smeared down the wall, no doubt where Harry had collided with it and slid down. Remus thought he might be sick.

He looked down and his breath caught in his throat. Harry was almost completely buried in heavy stone. All Remus could see was his head, the top of his chest, and his left hand sticking out of the pile of rocks. He was unconscious, his glasses askew, and on top of the injuries Remus had noted previously he also had a dribble of blood coming from his mouth, a sure sign of internal bleeding. Remus had no doubt that if he lifted Harry's head and felt the back, it would be bleeding freely, probably from a cracked skull.

Struggling to catch his breath, he put his ear to Harry's mouth and listened.

"He's still breathing!" he called out to the empty room in joyous disbelief. "He's still-" He couldn't finish, for his exclamation had turned into a sob. Covering his mouth with his hand, he felt a steady flow of tears dripping onto his fingers. Taking a deep breath, he snatched up Harry's hand and gently squeezed it.

"Harry. Harry, it's Uncle Moony. Come on, you've got to wake up."

Harry remained motionless, so Remus, still holding Harry's hand in his right, reached over with his left and shook Harry's right shoulder. Immediately Harry's brow furrowed and he whimpered.

"I'm so sorry Harry, I know it hurts, but please wake up," Remus said soothingly, though it was slightly broken with his tears. Harry groaned and winced before slowly opening his bright green eyes, clouded with pain. Remus carefully adjusted his glasses so that he could see. "Hey there. You gave me a scare, son."

It had just slipped out, but as soon as he said the word "son," he realized that it is what he'd come to see Harry as. He would give anything for him, and seeing him, a seventeen-year-old boy, in such immense pain, made Remus want to lie next to him and die from the guilt of it.

Harry blearily looked up at him, his eyes unfocused. "Dad?" he whispered weakly, his lips barely moving.

Remus' heart nearly broke. "No, Harry, this is Remus. Uncle Moony."

Harry tried to speak again, but it came out as a slight gurgle and a, "…oon...y?"

Remus smiled, although he was anything but happy, and said, "Yes Harry, it's Moony. I'm going to help you, okay?"

Harry very slightly shook his head. "It hurts…" Remus could not think of anything to respond to that, but Harry began to speak again. "Izzee… dead?"

Remus was having a very difficult time keeping his composure, but he nodded. He knew when he saw Voldemort's wand that the darkest wizard of the time had indeed been defeated. But at a terrible price.

"Yes, Harry, Voldemort's dead," Remus said, and despite the terrible situation, he couldn't be prouder of this young man before him. "He fell through the veil just like you intended. You did it. You saved us all."

Harry slowly nodded, though it seemed to bring him great pain, and he looked away slightly, his eyes drooping.

"No, Harry, stay awake!" Remus desperately shouted. Harry's eyes wrenched open again.

"Dad…" he mumbled, causing bit more blood oozing over the corner of his mouth.

Remus shook his head multiple times, not believing what he was seeing. "No, it's Uncle Moony, Harry, don't you remember?"

Remus remembered. And unbidden came an onslaught of memories, flipping through his head until his mind rested on an early August morning so many years ago.

"_Remus!"_

_Remus jumped from where he was sitting at his meager kitchen table, poring over a small leather-bound book. He whipped his head around and looked at the kitchen fire, which was glowing bright green. There sat Lily Potter's head, grinning like mad. _

"_Remus, come quick! Harry's been talking up a storm!"_

_His eyes widened in pleasant surprise. He had told the Potters to let him know when Harry started talking only yesterday. He quickly got up and rushed out the door. Hurrying down the steps, he hardly noticed the beautiful morning, with the sun just coming above the trees, before he'd reached the Potter house. He didn't even bother to knock; he never did._

"_So where is he?" he said hurriedly to Lily, who came walking into the living room, wiping her hands on her apron. _

"_Who? James?" she asked in confusion. "I think he's upstairs-"_

"_No, Harry! You said he was talking!" Remus spluttered, bewildered by the way she was acting._

_He barely registered her quizzical look before he heard something like an evil cackling coming from up the stairs. Immediately his eyes narrowed. _

"_Upstairs, you say?" he asked. By the time she'd answered with a curious "Yes," he was already heading up the stairs. He wrenched open the first door, which was the master bedroom, and immediately zeroed in on what appeared to be another Lily. "Is this really a prudent way to use your Polyjuice Potion stores?" he asked with annoyance._

"_Shh!" said the imposter-Lily. "Do you want her to find out?" Lily pointed downstairs. _

"_Yes, I want her to, you prat!" Remus burst out. "I was really excited! That was just cruel, James."_

_James rolled his eyes. Well, Lily's eyes. "Relax. You've been out of mischief for too long. But look, I've discovered that if you drink only a half a teaspoon of Polyjuice, you transform back to your normal self within ten minutes!" As if to illustrate what he'd explained, James began transforming back into himself._

"_And the use for that would be?" Remus asked, watching James' eyes fade from vibrant green to a dark hazel. "Wait, never mind, I don't care." With that he trumped downstairs and into the kitchen, where Lily was getting ready to feed Harry a spot of freshly baked bread. Remus immediately headed over to where little Harry was sitting in his booster seat and plunked down next to him. _

"_Okay, Harry, I need you to do me a favor," Remus whispered loudly, watching out of the corner of his eye as James walked in. "Can you say 'Uncle Moony' for me?"_

_Lily rolled her eyes. "Please, Remus, he's really hungry! He was just about to eat!"_

"_Perfect!" Remus said excitedly and snatched up the small piece of bread Lily was holding. He held it in front of Harry, knowing it was one of Harry's favorites. "Now, Harry, say 'Uncle Moony'!" _

_Harry simply blinked at him. Remus sighed exasperatedly and began to wave the bread in front of Harry's face. "Uncle Moony! Uncle Moony!" Harry continued to stare._

"_Remus, I think you might be cracking up a bit," James laughed. _

"_Uncle Moony!" Remus continued. "Come on, do you want bread? Say 'Uncle Moony!'"_

_Remus waved it rather close to Harry, and Harry snatched it right out of his hand before stuffing it into his mouth. James and Lily burst out laughing._

"_That's a Seeker, that is!" James said excitedly. Remus turned around grumpily. "What's the matter, Remus? You want to keep waving bread in a one-year-old's face?" James bent over Remus and waved his hand about while saying in a high-pitched voice, "Uncle Moony! Uncle Moony!"_

_And suddenly, finished with his bread, Harry pointed to Remus and said, clear as day, "Uncle Moony."_

_James dropped his hand and gaped. It was Remus' turn to laugh. Lily joined in heartily, mussing James' hair fondly before turning back to her cooking._

"_Good job!" Remus said exuberantly, and gave Harry another piece of bread._

Remus closed his eyes and another tear leaked out. He made no attempt to wipe it away.

"Dad, I…"

Harry was speaking again. Remus opened his eyes and saw Harry staring back at him, and had it not been for all the blood and the way Harry had just addressed him, Remus might have thought Harry was completely coherent. He was certainly staring very intensely. Remus gripped his hand tighter and leaned forward, caressing Harry's face lovingly with the other, and waited for Harry to speak.

Harry seemed to struggle. His breathing had become more ragged and the gurgling in his throat seemed to become more prominent. His intense stare seemed to glaze over again, but he continued to look directly into Remus' eyes as he whispered three little words.

"…I love you."

Remus stared, stunned beyond speech. Harry finally couldn't keep his eyes open any longer and allowed them to drift shut. He seemed to have fallen asleep for a moment, or so Remus wanted to convince himself. But suddenly Harry sucked in a shuddering, painful gasp, and all his muscles tensed. Then he exhaled, his muscles slowly relaxed, and he lay still.

* * *

A soft breeze was playing its way across his face, gently pushing back his hair as he took in the small wood surrounding him. The birds were chirping merrily, seemingly wanting to shout to the world how beautiful the day was. He could hear laughter from a short distance away, where a small child was playing happily. He slowly walked through the gate and stepped onto the sparse grass, poking his cane gingerly. With every step his old body was wracked with pain, but he continued to press forward. He slowly arrived at his destination and stopped short, looking at the etched epitaph in front of him with a bittersweet longing. 

_Harry James Potter_

_Beloved friend and son_

_A True Hero_

He felt his eyes prickle and welcomed it. He carefully lifted the week-old flowers out of the cup, trying not to jostle the hundreds of cards and trinkets that had been left either recently or long ago. He gently replaced the dead flowers with the ones he had carried in, tenderly running his hand over the stone beside it as he did so. He traced the name he knew so well, the name he would always remember. Although he'd had to say goodbye all those years ago, he knew that soon he would be able to say hello again, and be able to caress the young man's cheek as he caressed his gravestone now.

Standing slowly, ignoring his creaking bones, Remus stepped back. Before he turned and headed back to his old home, he spoke. His soft, tender words were caught by the gentle breeze and carried up into the sky, whispering to the heavens in beautiful sincerity.

"I love you too, Harry."

**The End**

**My FINAL Author's Note _Ever:_** Well, that's it. The end of my very last fanfic. Is there anything you didn't understand? Anything you want me to clarify? Any gaps you wish me to fill in? I assure you, I can answer your questions. You need only ask. I'm the Dumbledore of my fanfics. Even when I'm long gone, I can still help you out. (That was a reference to the chapter, "Kings Cross" in Deathly Hallows, in case you didn't catch it.)

Ha! Speaking of that chapter, here is a quote you should burn into your memory, contemplate, and apply to your own reading and writing. JKR is a genius.

"Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?"

That is the motto for all of us authors out there, let me tell ya.

By the way, you should find some connections in the ending segment, there, to the first chapter. Just so you know.

On a different note: Although she did not help me on this story, I would like to thank my best friend and indespensible beta, Melissa d (HoofsTails Gal). She has been a tremendous support not only with my writing, but also with my every day life, and I don't think I can ever thank her enough.

Also, thank you so much to all of you reviewers. You keep me going. You make me think. You put a smile on my face when I have every reason to frown. Thank you so much. Keep it up! I may not be writing anymore, but I still check my email religiously. **_PLEASE REVIEW!_**


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